"We are in a luxury position tomorrow" - George Russell praises Mercedes' hard work after winning 2022 F1 Brazilian GP Sprint race

Despite starting in third place, George Russell secured his first victory in the sport this afternoon in the 2022 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix sprint race ahead of Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton.

Mercedes showed an absolutely incredible pace at Interlagos with both drivers making their way through the grid seemingly with ease. Russell took the lead in the race from Max Verstappen on Lap 16 and maintained the position up until the end of the session.

In a post-sprint media interaction, George Russell insinuated that Mercedes could potentially be in a position to fight Max Verstappen and Red Bull for the win on Sunday. He said:

"It was incredible. We weren't expecting to have that much pace, but it goes to show all the hard work we are putting in and the progress we as a team have made. These last three races since Austin, the car has been feeling great and it is difficult to know how Max would have got on if he had been on the soft tyres. Nevertheless, standing here is a great feeling. It is difficult isn't it because this is a Sprint, so you have to manage risk and reward."

"Even though I was dying to get that victory, I didn't want to risk it too much and have no points starting at the back. We made it stick and third time lucky. It is crazy to think we are both starting on the front row and Lewis did a great job coming from P8 so it is exciting. I am sure Max is going to be flying tomorrow coming through the pack, but we are in a luxury position for tomorrow and can maybe split the strategy and go for the win."

---

George Russell excited about the prospect of Lewis Hamilton extending his Mercedes contract

George Russell, who joined Mercedes to partner Lewis Hamilton at the start of the 2022 season, admitted that he is excited about the prospect of continuing to work with the seven-time world champion as teammates further into the future.

Speaking to RacingNews365, Russell said:

"It's really exciting to have that potential of Lewis staying on for a number of years to come. I think he has proven that he's definitely not lifted his foot off the throttle pedal, and he's definitely [in] the last few races performing probably better than ever."

George Russell continued, saying:

"It's really exciting for me to have the opportunity to be his teammate, to go directly head-to-head with him and grow on this journey that we're on together because it really does feel like a journey that the two of us are on, along with the rest of the team, in trying to bring Mercedes back to winning ways.

With Carlos Sainz taking an engine penalty this weekend, both Mercedes cars will be lining up in the front row for the 2022 F1 Brazilian GP. With two races remaining in the season, the Silver Arrows are still chasing their first win of the year. The team's prospects of taking a win this weekend are certainly positive given the starting position and strong pace that the drivers enjoy.